Mine-door-operating apparatus.



W. M. HUMMEL.

MINE DOOR OPERATING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION mzo JUNE 24. 1916.

Patented Mar. 6, 1917.

2 SHEETSSHEET 1.

WITNESSES INVEN TOR I ByW M.Hum%Z nrronuirs w. M. HUMMEL.

MINE DOOR OPERATING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED 115N524. i916.

Patnted Mar. 6, 1917.

ZSHEETS-SHEET 2- WITNE888: mmvron A o 0 0 mlfummd '1 BY m a J20 ATTORNEYUNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM MARTIN HUMMEL, OF LEWISTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA.

MINE-DOOR-OYERATING APPARATUS.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM M. HUMMEL, a citizen of the United States,and a resident of Lewistown, in the county of Mifllin and State ofPennsylvania, have invented a new and Improved Mine-Door-OperatingApparatus, of which the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

This invention relates to automatic door opening and closing apparatusand deals particularly with an apparatus for opening mine or air chambertrap doors and for operating signals to indicate the open or closedposition of the door, the apparatus enabling the driver ofa car tohimself look after the opening or closing of a door and thereby do awaywith the need of boys for this purpose.

The invention has for'its general objects to improve the constructionand operation of door actuating means so as to be reliable and eilicientin use, comparatively simple and inexpensive to manufacture, and sodesigned as to enable the car driver to open or close the door fromsuitable points distant from the door. n

A more specific object of the invention is the provision of a motoractuated door, the circuits of the motor being controlled by manuallyactuated switches disposed along the track and at opposite sides of thedoor, and motor-actuated reversing switches so that the circuit will beautomatically opened after the door is opened or closed and-the motorcircuit placed in condition for operating the motor when a' switch atthe far side of the door is actuated by the car driver .so as to closethe door.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a noveldriving means between the motor and the door for swinging the sameopened and closed, such means including a device for automaticallyactuating the motor reversing switches.

With such objects in view, and others which will appear as thedescription proceeds, the invention comprises various novel features ofconstruction and arrangement of parts which will be set forth withparticularity in the following description and claims appended hereto.

, In the accompanying drawings, which illustrate one embodiment of theinvention and wherein similar characters of reference indicatecorresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic view of the electrical devices and circuitconnectlons Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 6, 1917.

Application filed June 24, 1916. Serial No. 105,557.

used in conjunction with a mine door and its operating means;

Fig. 2 is a front view of the electric mo tor, the transmission betweenit and the door, and the motor reversing switches, portion of the viewbeing shown on the section 2-2, Fig. 3;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal section on the line 33, Fig. 2;

Fig. i is a side view of a door as viewed from the plane 44, Fig. 3.

Referringto the drawing, A designates a mine or air chamber trap doormounted to swing on suitable hinges 1. In the door frame at the hingedside of the door is a segmental, gear 2which serves as an operatingcrank that is connected by .a. pitinan 3 with the door. The pitman ishingedly connected at 4 with the gear 2 and pivotally connected at 5with a block 6 which is slidable on a horizontal bar 7 fastened to thedoor, and at opposite sides of the block are oppositely actingcompression springs 8 and 9 carried by the rod 7 so that the pitman willhave a yielding connection with the door and compensate for the slightover-travel of the motor shaft.

Meshing with the segmental gear 2 is a inion 10 mounted on a shaft 11which is gournaled in bearings 12 on the frame B. This shaft has a gearwheel 13 which meshes with a pinion 14- on the shaft 15 of the elec tricmotor 0. The pinion 14 and shaft 15 and pinion 10 and gear 2 constitutea speed reduction transmitting means between the motor and door. Mountedon the frame B are reversing switches D and D, each composed of threecontacts 16 connected together by a link 17, and the links are in turnconnected with a lever 18. These levers are connected with a shift rod19 which has stops 20 and 20 which are alternately engaged by thetraveler or tappet 2:2. This traveler 22 is operated by a worm 23, theshaft 24 of which has a pinion 25 which meshes with a gear wheel 26 onthe shaft 11, so that the motor will operate the traveler 22 and causethe latter to automatically open the motor circuit and reverse theswitches D and D one with respect to the other. The movable members ofthe switches D and D are so connected that one switch will be open whilethe other switch is closed, or vice versa.

controlled by manually operated switches located at suitable distantpoints from the door. The opening switches are designated (l and O andthe closing switches C and C, the switch 0 being closed by a car driverfor instance when the door is approached from the left, and after thecar ortrain has passed the open door the switch C on the leaving side ofthe door is closed so that the door will be automatically closed. Whenthe train is traveling to the left from the right, the switch 0 is firstclosed to open the door, and then the switch C is closed to close theopen door after the train has passed. Each manually operated switchcomprises a movable contact 27 and a fixed contact 28, the movablecontact being connected with a rod 29 which extends along the track andis operatively connected with actuating levers 30 and 31, these leversbeing suitably spaced apart so that the switches can be convenientlyoperated from suitable points. It is to be understood that the switchesare kept closed only long enough to effect the opening or closing of thedoor A, and before releasing the levers 30 or 31 the attendant restoresthem to normal position, or springs 32 may be used for this purpose.

Current is derived from a suitable source (not shown) through positiveand negative leads and 34. A wire 35 extends from the lead 33 and hasbranches 36 and 37 connected respectively with the contacts 28 and 27 oithe switches C and C, the contacts 27 and 28 of these same switchesbeing connected together by a wire 38. The wire 38 is connected by awire 39 with the contact a of the switch D which is adapted to engage acontact I) which is connected by a wire 40 with one terminal 41 of themotor 0, and the other terminal 42 of which is connected by a wire 43with the contact I) of the switch D, this contact being engageable bythe switch member a that is connected by a wire 44 with the lead 43. Itwill thus be seen that when either switch C or C is closed while theswitchD is closed, the motor will receive current to cause the same toclose the door. A wire 45 connects the lead 33 with the member a of theswitch D, which switch member is adapted to engage a contact 6- that isconnected with one side of the motor by the wire 43, the other side ofthe motor being connected by the wire 40 with the contact 6 of theswitch D, and this contact is engaged by the switch member a. Thisswitch member is connected with awire 46 which has branches 4'? and 48that lead respectively to the contacts 27 and 28 of the door-openingswitches 0 and O, the other contacts of these switches being connectedby wires 49 and 50 with a wire 51 that connects with the lead 43. Thevarious instrumentalities shown in Fig. 1 represent a condition in whichthe door A is closed and the car driver is closing the open switch 0 onthe left-hand side of the door so as to open the latter. Current flowsthrough the closed. switches O and D and the motor 0 so as to rotate thesame and cause the door to swing open in an anticlockwise direction,Fig. 1. As the door moves open the traveler 22 shifts toward theabutment 20 on rod 19 and finally actuates the reversing switches D andD, closing the latter and opening the former. By this action the motoris cut out of circuit because the switches O and D are no longer inseries, and although the switch D is closed, noananually controlledswitch isclosed in circuit therewith. As soon as the door is opened thecar driver releases the switch 0 so that it will automatically open.Nothing further is done until the car passes the door and the lattermust be closed when the switch C is closed by the car driver so thatcurrent will pass through the motor 0 1n the reverse direction by way ofthe two closed switches C and D in series, and then the door will swingto closed position, and upon reaching this the traveler 22 will engagethe stop 20 and cause the switches D and D to reverse. As soon as thedoor is closed the switch O is allowed to open by the car driverreleasing it. In case of a car traveling in the opposite direction, thatis to say, from right to left, the opening and elosing'of the door iseffected in the same manner, except that the switches O and C aresuccessively actuated. The member a of the switch D cooperates with thecontact 6 to open and close a circuit which includes the white signallamps W located respectively at opposite sides of the door to indicatewhen the door is open. The switch member a cooperates with a contact 6for controlling a circuit in which red lamps are included, which likethe others are located at opposite sides of the door and serve toindicate when the door is closed. Thus, when the door is approached fromeither side, the red lamps will indicate that the door is closed andmust be opened by operating either switch 0, and when the door is fullyopen the circuit of the lamps "W will be completed and the circuit ofthe lamps R opened so that the white lights will show that the door hasreached its open position.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanyingdrawings, the advantages of the construction and method of operationwill be readily understood by those skilled in the art to which theinvention appertains, and while I have described the principle ofoperation, together with the apparatus which I now consider to be thebest embodiment thereof, ll desire to have it understood that theappasuch changes may be made when desired as fall withinthe scope of theappended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent:

1. In a door operating mechanism, the combination of a swinging door, amotor, a transmission means between the-motor and door, a pair ofnormally open separate open ing and closing switches at each side of thedoor and suitably remote therefrom, reversing switches, one adapted tobe in series circuit with the opening switches and the other in seriescircuit with the closing switches, one reversing switch being nor mally"open and the other normally closed, and mechanical means separate fromthe doorand driven by the motor and operatively connected with thereversing switches for opening one and closing the other when the dooris fully openedor closed.

2. In a door opening and closing apparatus, the combination of, a door,an electric motor, a transmission between the door and motor andincluding a yielding connection with the door, a screw operativelyconnected with the motor to be driven thereby, reversing switches forcontrolling the motor, means operatively connecting the switchestogether, whereby one will be open while the other is closed, a travelermovable by the screw, and means with which the traveler engages when thedoor is fully opened or fully closed to reverse the switches, normallyopen manually actuated opening switches at opposite sides of the doorandadapted to be in series circuit with one of the first-mentionedswitches, and normally open manually actuated closing switches atopposite sides of the door and adapted to be connected in circuit withthe other of the first-mentioned switches.

WILLIAM MARTIN HUMMEL. Witnesses:

ELLEN E. MILLER, A. H. SLAUTTERBAOH.

